Saturday, March 21, 2009

Crocodile Trapping

Just to throw another spanner in the works, we find out today in a news story that some idiots have been releasing crocodiles from traps that have been set in various locations in Darwin Harbour. This creates a bigger problem because the freed crocs aren't likely to go back into the traps again but are more likely to move further upstream into smaller creeks looking for freshwater and better habitat. Once crocodiles become wary they are less likely to be caught and can move into new areas undetected.

The crocodile management team in the Northern Territory catch and remove crocodiles from designated exclusions zones. Exclusion zones are urban areas where the risk of human and crocodile conflict are increased.

As a result of the recent crocodile fatality the issue of crocodile culling has been renewed in the media, however it's a topic thats often misunderstood by the public. Crocodile exclusion areas are a no tolerance zone that are more effective than a broad crocodile cull, because they specifically target those crocodiles that are most likely to become a threat to people. Although you can never catch every crocodile within the management zone, the overall effect is to greatly reduce risk for people in areas that matter.

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The Croc Spot

Crocodiles are always in the news, for one reason or another and they certainly grab people's attention. This blog helps to explore further some of the issues and stories about crocodiles that make headline news

About Me

I'm a biologist working on crocodiles with a business called Big Gecko along with my husband Adam.
We tend to spend a little too much time thinking about crocodiles!
I hope to communicate our thoughts to a wider audience so that hopefully people will understand crocodiles better.